Hi,We live in Stonington, of which Mystic is section. We really like Anthony J's (aka AJ's) which is near the intersection of Holmes St. and East Main St.(the flagpole intersection) right near the drawbridge. There's also Bravo Bravo which is right across E. Main. A little more of a NY feel there. Both have really good Italian-inspired food. The S&P Oyster house (directly across Holmes St. from AJ's) is great for location and view, but the food is not at the same level. From any of them you can walk across the drawbridge to The Drawbridge Ice Cream for dessert. (excellent ice cream!). Or keep walking thru downtown and take a right on Pearl St. and visit the Harp & Hound Irish pub.Final spot right off downtown Mystic, with authentic old New England ambiance is Capt. Daniel Packer Inn, on West Mystic Ave. Dates back to 1745. Very good, traditional fare.

The ultimate for view is The Skippers' Dock on Water St. in Stonington Borough, just a couple miles east on Rt.1. It sits right out on Stonington Harbor and features seafood, naturally. Food is ok, but not great. The usual seaside menu suspects. But a little further up Water St. is The Water St. Cafe, which has a dizzying choice of oysters at the raw bar, and always very interesting fish selections (not your run-of-the-mill recipes). If you like sushi, try the seared yellowfin tuna. Call first, though to make sure they're open for lunch the day you go. Again, sort of NY feel. Don't bother with Noah's, which is also on Water St. Stonington Borough is a nice place to walk around, too, esp. if you like antiques. If you go, drive all the way down Water St. to the point and take in the view.By the way, the previous commenter on Up River Cafe is right. Excellent food and creative menu.

We were recently in Mystic for a weekend get a way and my favorite meal (lunch) was at the Water st. Cafe in Stonington. Nothing fancy, just fresh, creative, fantastic menu. We loved the funky ambiance. We had a nice dinner at Noah's too but my fav was Water St. Cafe.

joec0914 is right on. Just a little more info--Anthony J's is small and intimate, and the menu includes pizzas, daily specials. Bravo Bravo has a more sophisticated feel and I think slightly better food. I agree with him about S & P--they are doing a great business with a beautiful patio right on the Mystic River, but the food isn't as good as some other places. But if the weather was beautiful, that might be tempting. I'd like to add one suggestion--Azu on Main Street. Azu is run by the same people as Bravo Bravo, but a little less expensive and a little more casual. They have a nice bar, a number of tables, and a "bites" menu which has a lot of small items. I love their nachos.

Have you been to the new french fry place (can't think of the name) in downtown Mystic next to the Emporium? They are supposed to have lunch and dinner as well as fries?

I think you could bother with Noah's - they have a wonderful lunch - very fresh seafood and running a bunch of german specials (wurst's, schnitzel's, etc) for Octoberfest and if you are into beer they have Spaten Ocktoberfest on tap this month - saw it in the paper last night.

Joe, you'll laugh at this one...we didn't make it to Mystic for lunch. Got a late start & we were starving by the time we got to the Middletown area, so we stopped at The First & Last Tavern (in Middletown). We should have kept starving & toughed it out till we got to Mystic! (Read my review of the First & Last Tavern under that topic name). We window shopped in Mystic for awhile, but that was about it. Next time, we'll make sure to heed the recommendations for restaurants listed here.